Doctors tell Liu Xiaobo's family to prepare for his death

Treatment against liver cancer interrupted, in preference of palliative care. The invitation from specialists from the United States and Germany halted over bureaucratic issues. Liu's friends suspect that authorities want to let him die.

Beijing (AsiaNews / Agencies) - Families and friends of the Nobel Peace Laureate Liu Xiaobo have been warned by doctors that dissident's life is nearing its end. His cancer is at the last stage and developing very fast.

Liu's doctor's statement given to the family was issued last night and advised them to prepare for his death within the next 24 hours.

Because of his slow functioning liver, Liu's no longer being administered Chinese or Western medicines to fight the tumor. He is only being given pain relief treatment. According to his friends, in contact with the family, Liu eats very little and is being fed with the drip.

In recent days, the hospital asked for specialists from the United States and Germany to cure the dissident, but so far nobody has been able to come because of bureaucracy. There are, in fact, communication problems between the Chinese government and the Western embassies.

Liu's friends suspect that the authorities are letting him die: first, his cancer was only diagnosed when in its last stage; Then there is the fact that he was confined to a qualified hospital, but one far from the capital, where the doctors of the team following him live and who for this reason cannot be close to his bedside; Finally there are these bureaucratic delays to allow foreign doctors arrive to treat him.

Liu Xiaobo, 61, is one of the most significant personalities of contemporary Chinese culture. In 2009 he was sentenced to 11 years in prison for writing and disseminating the Charter '08, a document on the urgency of political, social and religious reforms for China. In 2010 he was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize.